Childhood by Markus Natten
Short Answer-type Questions (About 30-40 words each)
Q1. What answer /answers did the poet provide to the question put in the
first stanza: “When did his childhood go?”
Ans. He
answered himself by asking if it was the day when he completed the eleventh
year of his age. It was the time when he had started realising the difference
between ‘Hell and Heaven’. He came to know that ‘Hell and Heaven’ did not exist
(present) anywhere. Those were only the states of mind.
Q2. What answer /answers did the poet
provide to the question put in the second stanza: “When did my childhood go?”
Ans. The
poet answered himself by asking if it was the time when he realised that adults were not
what they all seemed to be. They
appeared that they were not from inside. They talked and preached about love.
But they did not follow what they preached. They were hypocrites.
Q3. What answer /answers did the poet
provide to the question put in the third stanza: “When did his childhood go?”
Ans. He answered
himself by asking if it was the time when he found his mind was really his and
he started using his own thoughts to decide the problems. At that time he had
stopped depending on others for solving his own problems.
Q4. What answer /answers did the poet
provide to the question put in the fourth stanza: “Where did my childhood go?”
Ans. The poet answers
himself by saying that it went to some forgotten place. The line “That’s
hidden in an infant’s face” shows that the poet has searched his
childhood everywhere. At last, he found its reflection on an infant’s face. It
means that the poet has been able to reach the realization that childhood lives
in the innocence reflected in the infant’s face.
Q5. What truth does the poet seem to
realize at the end of the poem?
Ans.
The poet seems to realize the truth that the state of innocence must give way
to the state of experience. The knowledge of worldly wisdom is desirable
for the human mind. Otherwise, it would be difficult for human beings to live
peacefully.
Q6. What does the poet say about the
adults?
Ans. He tells
us about the hypocrisy shown by the adults. He lost faith in the adults because
they did not act on what they preached. They always preached to him to love
others, while they themselves did not love others. They showed to others as if
they were very close and loving to them. But in reality, they criticised and
disliked them. They showed them only mouth honour.
Q7. When did the poet’s mind start
rationalize the thoughts and how?
Ans. In
the third stanza, the poet talks about his adulthood although he does not
mention it. He has gained the wisdom of life. His faculty of mind to
rationalize things has developed. Now he can differentiate between good and
evil; right and wrong. He can make his own decisions and form opinions
about others. He would no longer depend on others’ opinions which are usually full
of prejudice and jealousy.
Q8. What does the poet conclude at the end of the
poem?
Ans.
Thus the poem ends at the poet’s conclusion that his childhood has been
transferred to another child. If a person wants to see his own childhood, he or
she can watch a child’s face and feel glad to see the lost childhood reflected
in it.
(B) Some Important Stanzas for
Comprehension
Stanza 1
When
did my childhood go?
Was it the day I ceased to be eleven,
Was it the time I realized that Hell and Heaven,
Could not be found in Geography,
And therefore could not be,
Was that the day!
Q1. Name the poem and its poet.
Ans.
The poem is “Childhood’ and its poet is Markus Natten
Q2.When did the poet’s childhood come to
an end according to the poet in the above stanza?
Ans.
It came to an end when the poet completed his eleventh year of his age.
Q3. What knowledge did the poet gain
about ‘Hell and Heaven’?
Ans.
He gained the knowledge that Hell and Heaven cannot be found in geography
because these are the states of the human mind.
Q4. Give the meaning of ‘ceased’.
Ans.
Stopped
Stanza 2
When did my childhood go?
Was it the time I realised that adults were not
all they seemed to be,
They talked of love and preached of love,
But did not act so lovingly,
Was that the day!
Q1. What did the adults talk about and preach
to the poet?
Ans.
The adults talked of love and preached of love.
Q2. What knowledge did the poet gain
about the adults?
Ans.
He came to know that the adults did not do what they talked and preached.
Q3. What did the behavior of the adults
show to the poet?
Ans.
It showed their hypocrisy.
Stanza 3
When did my childhood go?
Was it when I found my mind was really
mine,
To use whichever way I choose,
Producing thoughts that were not those
of other people,
But my own, and my alone,
Was that the day!
Q1. What does the poet mean by “my mind was really mine”?
Ans. It
means that the poet has become able to depend on his own thoughts.
Q2. What has the poet stopped doing now?
Ans. The
poet has stopped depending on others for taking opinions.
Q3. How does the poet use his own thoughts now?
Ans. He
uses his thoughts in his own way now. He solves his problems himself now.
Stanza 4
Where did
my childhood go?
It went to some forgotten place,
That’s hidden in an infant’s face,
That’s all I know.
Q1. Where did the poet’s
childhood go according to the poet in the above stanza?
Ans.
It went to some forgotten place.
Q2. Where did the poet find his
childhood?
Ans.
He found it in the infant’s face.
Q3. How does the poet feel after losing
his childhood?
Ans.
He feels sad after losing his childhood.
Q4. Which poetic device has been used in
this poem?
Ans.
It is ‘refrain’.
